The Soldier
by Tandirra
Summary: No Slash. Part of a series. Follows the general plot of Captain America: The Winter Soldier but in this particular multi fic spanning universe which includes Loki as a major player.
1. Chapter 1

**Part of a series but if you want to read it anyway all you need to take away is, Loki has been part of the team for probably 5 years now and is mostly reformed**

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A great golden castle of light sprouted from Loki's rug. It shimmered as he adjusted the algorithm holding the miniature imitation of Asgard's crown jewel together. He sighed and stepped back to admire his handiwork, then, after a few contemplative moments, allowed the light algorithm to fulfill its purpose. A fleet of tiny ships popped into existence and Loki watched as they attacked the structure. Only a few were able to pull in close before the protective bubble, activated by a theoretical Heimdall, encased the city; and those that did were quickly annihilated.

The simulation was over in a matter of minutes. With a wave of his hand Lok dissipated the palace and began to pace

The complete stagnation of his life frustrated him to no end. It had become apparent to him in the last few months that he was not meant for a life of complacency. Never before had his existence been so dull and easily predictable; for the life of him he could not imagine how anyone could live such a lifestyle comfortably.

He conjured a knife, flipping it agitatedly. Spinning around, twisting the rug underneath him, Loki flung the knife towards one of his bookshelves; where it stuck firmly in the dark hardwood with a solid _thunk_. "Ugh, this is unbearable! I will wither away here and none shall be any the wiser until they _deign_ to grace me with their presence!"

In response to his outburst, Jarvis, his only reliable sounding board of late, sprang to life. "Sir, may I suggest, as I have in the past, that you allow yourself a looser leash. There is nothing to keep you from doing so..." The AI trailed off, it already knew his answer.

Shaking his head, Loki scowled down at his arm, the culprit of his torment, the tracker. "My _leash_ as you so aptly put it, is not mine to control. I feel as much a hound of S.H.I.E.L.D. as Rogers, Barton, and Romanoff. I, simply, am not the attack dog but the caged one."

Jarvis's next words were more to his liking. "Then you would not be interested in reading the mission briefing Ms. Romanoff has sent regarding her latest assignment." There was a pause as Jarvis waited for him to crack. "Both she and-"

"Ah, she mentioned being assigned to a mission with Steve this morning. They must have made it back. Yes, print the thing out for me, Jarvis. I'll take a look at it as I walk the city for the _hundredth_ time."

Half an hour later, with briefing in hand and hair pulled back; Loki strolled to his cafe of choice. One thing he had learned from his months of inactivity was that Midgardians, when on unawares, are remarkably ignorant to appearances. There was no need for elegant disguises when a plain hat or hooded jacket would accomplish the same effect.

Situating himself in a secluded corner, Loki flipped through the documents over a cup of tea. Much to his annoyance a great deal of the briefing was encoded. Even more frustrating, after taking the time to decipher the lettering; it turned out to be nothing more than different ways to say "classified", followed by a smiley face, obviously Natasha's doing. At the end of the deeply unsatisfying read was a note from Natasha that read: " _Sorry! Too secret for you. Call you later"_ closed off by a final infuriating smiley face.

"Oh, that's rich. How typical." Gathering himself up he swept out of the cafe. Taking his annoyance out on a random customer, freezing the man's coffee with a wave of his fingers. He hurried down the street, lamenting the cheap thrills he had been brought to.

Natasha did call him, early in the dark morning hours.

In the middle of solving a delicate glass puzzle, his phone rang. He grasped the glass sphere tight with one hand to avoid dropping it; with the other he reached for the phone, swiping for speaker. Going back to inspecting the puzzle he spoke, allowing more than a little resentment seep into his voice. "Took you long-" Shaky breathing on the other end of the line cut off his sarcastic greeting. With nothing forthcoming, Loki cautiously continued, caught off guard. "Natasha..?"

He could hear her attempting to compose herself on the other side. Utterly alarmed, Loki found himself unable to speak. Only once before had he heard her cry and that had been merely a clever trick. This, clearly, was not that.

After a minute that seemed to stretch on forever, she spoke, voice still wavering just slightly. "Fury is dead."

Glass crunched as Loki dropped the puzzle from his hand. Shocked, his mind had trouble processing her words. "Wha-what?"


	2. Chapter 2

Natasha's words sounded distant as she repeated herself. "Nick Fury is dead."

Caught completely unawares, Loki searched for words. He had never _liked_ the director but out of anyone at S.H.I.E.L.D. he had respected the Midgardian. "I'm sor- how? What happened?" He had his assumptions but confirmation was what he desired.

The line went quiet for a moment and when Natasha did respond it was in an urgent tone, previous shakiness almost entirely absent from her voice. "Steve, he- I shouldn't- listen, Loki; something's up. Steve- he… I can't talk to you like this. I have to go." She breathed deep, sadness mixing with her urgency. "They're preping his body, I- I need to say goodbye."

"You're in D.C., yes?"

A beat of silence, then Natasha's hurried response. " _Yes_. Loki, you're the only person I'm calling… _okay_? Now I'm hanging up."

The line went dead and Loki let his eyes fall to the floor. Noticing the vast array of glass shards that surrounded his feet like a minefield. He gave the wrecked orb a moment's pause before choosing to ignore the mess and stepping away from it; pacing as his train of thought continued on. His mind whirled around what Natasha had said to him, and what she had not.

Whatever had happened to Fury, Loki assumed assassination, the most obvious conclusion for a figurehead such as the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. It hadn't been a simple hit, not only did Loki doubt Fury would have been easy to eliminate; the thought had scarcely crossed his mind in different times, but Natasha would not be so rattled unless there was something more and she didn't know what it was. By her evasive words it seemed she worried about being recorded, a reasonable fear in his eyes as Midgardian communication technology always seemed so reliant on easily stolen algorithmic programs.

"Surely though… S.H.I.E.L.D. monitors the airways of their top agents for tampering… Oh, you dunce, _obviously…_ S.H.I.E.L.D. has many enemies." Repeating a rhetoric he recalled Clint telling him when he first arrived on Midgard; Loki wondered how many of those enemies were from inside the agency itself. How far in over their heads were Natasha and Steve? It was clear the former suspected some deal of tampering, but how deep that rabbit hole went remained unknown. And Steve, he was smart but no agent of espionage; Loki had serious doubts of Steve's capabilities in that field.

"I on the other hand…" His eagerness trailed off and he ceased his pacing, gazing down with unease toward his arm. He had hated making his whereabouts constantly known to people whom he had some degree of begrudging trust. Now, with what scraps of trust he had undermined entirely, he realized his own vulnerability. With the tracker in his arm, if the hit truly was an inside job, he'd be more of a burden than an aid to the two. If he was going to help something would have to be done about the thing.

His first instinct was Tony; the man had made the thing and surely had programmed in an off switch of sorts. "Jarvis, could you send a message to Tony for me? As directly as possible, preferably."

"Of course, sir. Though he may not respond immediately, the time being what it is."

Scoffing, Loki massaged his forehead. " _Really-_ there is some kind of urgency protocol, is there not? Do not answer that; I know there is, so tell him to get to New York. That there is an emergency and I need his help but I cannot tell him what said emergency is."

With his message sent, Loki drew a blank on what could be done next. Should Tony _not_ come through there was the option to tear the tracker free himself but Loki recoiled at the idea. The measures against such actions were severe. While he knew he could do such a thing and live, it was a last case scenario he'd rather not breach.

 **00000**

A far too long debriefing and a quick change of clothes later and Natasha slipped back into the hospital where she had confronted Steve. Hood up, head down, she walked past nurses and avoided the odd straggling S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.

Steve knew something; Fury had told him something he was keeping to himself. Why he didn't trust her with that information annoyed her to no end, as did having to clean up after him, making sure what he was hiding didn't fall into the wrong hands.

It didn't take her long to find the thing. She muttered under her breath as she fished in her wallet for quarters. "I can't believe- c'mon Steve, I know this isn't exactly your element but… _A vending machine_?"

With a pocketful of gum and the USB stick in hand, Natasha slunk into the shadows of an empty room, waiting for Steve to try and retrieve his burden. She stared down at the little silver device, a pit in her gut.

Whatever was on this thing is what got Fury killed. She had given it to him and hours later he's attacked by the Soldier. It was her fault he was dead. She felt the long healed wound on her stomach the Soldier had given her years ago, closing her eyes, she tried to shake her guilt.

Another person she had cared about was dead because of her. _Another one_.

"Dammit. Get a grip."

Clearly whatever was on the drive was important. Surely Fury never would have let its existence leave the tiny circle of people he trusted. Sure, the thing had a tracking program but everyone who jacked the Lemurian Star was either dead or jailed. The hit had to have come from inside S.H.I.E.L.D. How deep it all went, though, that was the real mystery.

Reaching out to Loki had been a gut reaction. He was the only person she could think of that had no real respect for S.H.I.E.L.D. and who had expertise in any kind of espionage. It cut her deep not to contact Clint but it was too risky; he was halfway across the world on another mission and likely surrounded by possibly hostile S.H.I.E.L.D. She wasn't sure yet how deep they were in this, but Fury's death would have consequences yet to unfold. As hard as she tried, she could be sure what those consequences would be, but any kind of backup would be a load off her back.

It wasn't long until the first wave of those consequences hit.

Her phone lit up, a new development sent out to all S.H.I.E.L.D. agents regardless of their standing: _Steve Rogers; enemy to S.H.I.E.L.D., report sightings but do not engage. Highly dangerous._

"Oh… ohh. Okay, we're in deep shit." Unwrapping a stick of gum, she popped it in her mouth, sent a text to Loki. Her phone rang, it was Clint. She pocketed her phone, not answering, with a weight in her chest. All she had to do now was play the waiting game.

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 **AN: First two chapters out! There will be updates every two days because for once I actually finished a story before starting to publish it. Would love to hear feedback even though these two chapters are pretty short.**


	3. Chapter 3

An alert from Jarvis roused Loki from his meditations. "Sir, I have learned something that may be of importance to you."

Loki hopped to his feet. "Go on then, what is it? Has Tony responded yet?"

"No, sir. Steve rogers has been named an enemy to S.H.I.E.L.D."

Another blow, though it did confirm his suspicions. "How- this cannot be public knowledge, how do you know this?"

"Back when you first arrived on Earth, sir; Mr. Stark hacked into some mid level S.H.I.E.L.D. intelligence. While they have long since disabled the device Mr. Stark used to do so, the programming still exists to give me access to a very basic amount of information. This alert had no security surrounding it."

Loki smirked despite the situation. "I always knew Steve had it in him. Thank you, Jarvis, you are being far more helpful than your master." His phone buzzed, a text from Natasha. He recognized the nonsense letters as the cipher she had used in the debriefing previously. It didn't take him long to decipher the message.

The text read: " _ASAP. U have maybe 1 hr. Follow S Agents. Find us. Don't engage follow behind. They won't b looking for u at first. NO TRACKER. :)"_

Gritting his teeth; Loki recoiled at the nonchalance of her message. She knew full well how hard it would be to fulfill the last part of her request, especially on short notice. It was a big ask, one it looked like she knew he wouldn't refuse.

It didn't take long for him to prepare himself, opting for a simple disguise, there would be no chance of him having the energy to hold any sort of enchantment after what he was about to do. He steeled himself for one long moment; very much not looking forward to what was coming.

Shaking off his apprehension, Loki first tore a strip of leather from one of his jackets and bit down on it, then; grabbed the knife he had stuck in his bookshelf and held it above his arm. His hand did not shake in the slightest.

There was probably a less messy way to do this, but he could not think of a faster way and time was of the essence.

He took a deep breath and drove the knife toward his skin. As it pierced his skin he grimaced and stifled a flinch. Spots appeared in his vision as he dug the blade in deeper, every instinct screaming at him to stop. Dark blood spurt at his face and he forced himself not to close his eyes. He choked down a scream as the tracker's security measures, the ones he had a hand in implementing as his brain so helpfully reminded him, went off. White hot pain shot through him and his steady hand shuddered, straying the knife from its path and carving an unneeded chasm in his arm. His ears rang overwhelmingly loud as he dug the blade towards the small metal tracker; each magical barrier broken sent a spasm through his body and threatened to fill his vision entirely with impossibly bright white light. Metal made contact with metal and he desperately pulled upward. It was when the tracker moved from its intended position that Tony's security measures kicked in. Electricity shot through him and brought Loki to his knees; threatening to knock him out entirely. He felt his fingers stiffening and made one final effort.

The knife and tracker freed themselves from his arm with a final gush of blood and fell to the ground. He spit out the leather strip and quelled his desire to stay on the ground. His whole body screamed with pain, his forearm a bloody mess; scored by a deep slice that ran near to the bone. Deep red blood pooled on the carpet underneath him. Loki knew his wound would not stop bleeding any time soon, one of his more regrettable enchantments had ensured that.

Forcing himself to stand, stiff legs protesting, Loki wrapped his wound in heavy white gauze, cursing himself for putting healing negating enchantments around the tracker. When the wound was sufficiently tended to he pulled down the sleeve to his jacket and adjusted it, wincing as the gauze shifted. He shuddered, shaking off the throbbing pain as best he could. Throwing a contemptuous look at the bloody tracker that laid innocently on his carpet, he prepared his exhausted psyche for travel and summoned up the remainder of his depleted energy reserves. He disappeared from the tower, leaving the tracker to blink on, a specter to throw off any interested parties.

He appeared across the Potomac from the Triskelion on a grassy lawn. Staggering to the street, he watched the building, noting a clean up crew on the connecting bridge that seemed to be hauling the wreck of a Quinjet. The sight made him grin as he easily suspected the culprit.

Hailing a cab, ensuring his face was mostly shadowed by the hood he wore, Loki ducked inside and turned to continue to watch the building.

The driver, a younger looking woman, smiled at him as he hunched over in the cramped backseat. "Where to, my dude?"

"I need you to follow some cars… eventually." Pitching his voice up an octave, Loki did not look at her.

He heard the woman laugh in disbelief. "Are you crazy?"

"That remains to be seen. What if I compensate you with say… five hundred for every thirty minutes we wait?" He pulled the bills, stolen from Tony at some point in the past, from his wallet and held them out. "Thousand up on top of that sum if you get me where I need to go."

A stunned silence followed, then Loki felt her take the first payment out of his hand and laugh again. " _Alright_ , I can definitely do that. Just… tell me when to go and who to follow, I'm all ears."

Just as Natasha had said, about an hour later Loki spotted a fleet of black vans pulling away from the Triskelion; which roused him from his pain induced haze. He pointed them out, watching the group drive past them. "There, follow those."

The driver nodded and began to follow, keeping a safe distance from them. She glanced back at him, suddenly uneasy. "Those came from that S.H.I.E.L.D. facility… You're not a… bad guy, right? I'm not gonna get arrested for this am I?"

"Mmm… Not at the moment, no."

The vans sent them far across the city, finally pulling up at a mall. The cab driver stopped around the corner and turned to look at him, trying to get a better look at his face. "If you get people killed, guy, I'm gonna feel _real bad_ about myself. Even with this money."

Flashing a grin, Loki handed her the rest of her payment and stepped, rather less gracefully than he preferred, out of the cab. "You've been remarkably helpful, worry not. I am in no position to be starting anything." The door swung closed on his reassurance and he jogged away.

He entered the mall, keeping a good distance from any agents; easily identifiable by the all black garb they wore. It wasn't long until he spotted Steve and Natasha, though their outfits threw him at first. They were exiting a store, Natasha made brief eye contact with him before turning back to Steve and muttering something into his ear.

Following along with their movements, Loki kept them in his peripheral vision, careful not to stare. As they stepped onto an escalator to intercept him, a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent entered the opposing one. Loki stopped, preparing to intervene and make sure they weren't seen, despite his current weakness. Natasha, however, saved him from that. He watched as she turned to Steve, said something, then, very suddenly, kissed him. Loki couldn't help but laugh at the brilliance of it. Their faces were hidden and the agent looked away from them with a sneer.

The two disconnected and stepped off the elevator; Natasha looked smug and Steve embarrassed. Loki stayed a score of paces behind them until they exited the mall and made their way into an almost empty parking garage.

Steve turned to look at him, eyeing him with concern. "You look _terrible_."

Before he could answer, Natasha interjected still smirking. "Don't say that, Steve, that's just his face."

Loki raised an eyebrow and leaned against the door of a random car; wincing as his arm sent out a new throb of discomfort. " _Right_ , glad to see I'm appreciated. I _was_ going to compliment your quick thinking but suddenly I'm not feeling so generous. Oh, since you asked; I'm fine. Though it remains to be seen how much use I will be in this state."

Natasha nodded and looked around at the cars around them, pursing her lips thoughtfully. "Any trustworthy hands are good hands right about now. And, when it comes to hating S.H.I.E.L.D. you're the number one goodish guy to go to…" She frowned, noticing Steve had left their side. "Where did he-"

With the distinct sound of a car door opening, Steve waved his hand from across the parking garage. "Found us a ride! We'll uh… give it back later."

Exchanging a surprised look with Natasha, the two of them caught up to the soldier.

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 **AN: As promised, an update. Will continue to update every two days like this.**


	4. Chapter 4

"New Jersey? That's an… unexpected development."

Out of the story Loki had been given, the location the USB had linked back to caught him most by surprise.

"Not every super villain has a flair for the dramatic, you know." Natasha turned from the front seat to smirk at him.

Loki shifted, stretching out to lay across the back seat of the truck. " _No?_ I suppose that's why _I_ am wasting away in the backseat of a stolen truck instead of anyone else." He scowled as his wound ached. From his vantage point he had been watching Steve closely between shifting in and out of consciousness.

By far the most expressive and open of the group, Steve had always been easy to read. It was simply his nature. Now was no different. He was trying to put on a brave face, responding as he should to Natasha's kissing jabs, but Loki saw how tense he was. Loki was sure Natasha knew it too, she more than likely felt similar just didn't show it. There was a grey area in what happened, something that Loki was more than familiar with but that clearly did not sit well with Steve. The man possessed a conviction Loki had to admire but without a clear enemy Loki could tell he was shaken.

Knowing this, Loki took care as he broached his next topic. "So… Why was it that I, of all people, you deemed trustworthy enough to contact? Other than my distaste for S.H.I.E.L.D., that is."

Steve and Natasha exchanged a glance and a silent conversation passed between them. At Steve's nod Natasha turned back to look at him, sliding her arms around the headrest of her seat. "It really was my executive decision. Don't flatter yourself too much." She held up a hand and began to count on her fingers. "Thor is _wherever_ , Tony has helped S.H.I.E.L.D. in the past and he's halfway across the country, Bruce is too vulnerable and _also_ out of our reach, and Clint… I would have preferred him but he's across the globe and surrounded possibly corrupt S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Are you seriously suggesting that any of them may have any knowledge of this? That's laughable."

Natasha glared at him momentarily. "There's also that whole deal with any communication I send out being monitored. And before you say anything; I figured you were adept enough at this kind of espionage to figure things out without me having to spell it out for you. That's not necessarily a good thing, by the way."

Despite her tacked on jab, Loki smirked and closed his eyes. Letting the sound of the truck and the weariness of extreme blood loss lull him to sleep.

Hours later the sound of a door slamming next to his ear roused Loki from his sleep. He rose slowly, the chunk missing from his arm still shooting bolts of pain through his body. In front of them stood a fenced off facility, long abandoned. Once he exited the truck he could see the doubt on Natasha's face and a more complex emotion on Steve's.

"Where is this place?" A sign hung on the gate that read: Camp Lehigh. He could read it just fine; what he wanted was a response from Steve.

"This is it?"

It seemed Natasha too wanted more than that, as she prompted Steve again. "The file comes from these coordinates."

"So did I." Steve's voice sounded distant.

Allowing Steve to be lost in his memories, Loki dealt with the locked gate. Tearing the lock apart with a solid tug from his good arm, not the most elegant solution but an effective one. He pushed the gates open and was followed by Natasha and Steve as the sun began to set. In the growing darkness the buildings of the decrepit camp loomed over them menacingly. The camp was silent, seemingly undisturbed for decades.

"This camp is where I was trained." Steve's wistful voice cut through the dark.

"Change much?"

Loki noticed Steve stop, his voice was soft when he spoke. "A little."

Not much later Natasha spoke up again, frowning at her phone. "This is a dead end. Zero heat signatures, zero waves, not even radio." She pocketed her phone. "Whoever wrote the file must have used a router to throw people off."

The expression on Steve's face changed and Loki glanced behind him to see what had caught his attention. "What is it?"

Steve answered him as he began to jog toward his focus. "Army regulations forbid storing munitions within five-hundred yards of the barracks. This building is in the wrong place."

Loki smirked as they approached the building. "Sometimes you remind me remarkably of Thor… He surprises me with all sorts of military information, Asgardian, though, of course."

With a single swipe of his shield Steve snapped the lock and the three of them stepped inside.

The sight that met them was rows of dusky desks, an older looking version of the eagle crest of S.H.I.E.L.D. emblazoned on the far wall. Dim white baleful lighting gave the place a ghastly feel. Loki grimaced as he ran a finger along the surface of a desk and picked up a thick layer of dust.

As they passed through the rows of long abandoned workstations Natasha murmured in astonishment. "This is S.H.I.E.L.D"

"Maybe where it started." Steve spoke in the same hushed tone.

The rows led them to a back room; where the portraits of three people hung askew in a place of honor. Loki faintly recognized the trio from his studies of his companions. He saw easy resemblance to Tony from the man in the center, mostly the eyes.

Natasha echoed his thoughts. "There's Stark's father."

"Howard."

The man on the left was a general of some kind by the look of his garb, Loki passed him by. The woman on the right struck him as more familiar. He remembered seeing her face in pictures, dark hair, dark lips in the grey toned photograph, there significance of her in Steve's previous life. Though her name escaped him.

"Who's the girl?" Natasha glanced at Steve, Loki saw in her eyes that she already knew the answer. She wasn't oblivious, she was testing Steve.

Steve passed on her comment, moving on with a clenched jaw and a downward gaze. The soldier paused in front of one of the many empty shelves. "If you're already working in a secret office…" Loki watched as Steve shifted his weight and hooked his fingers between a crack in the wall of shelving. With a heave the shelf gave way and revealed a secret elevator. Steve turned to look at them. "...why do you need to hide the elevator?"

Impressed by Steve's keen eye, Loki merely smiled and strode past him.

The elevator was activated by a number pad combination; something Natasha cracked with ease. Soon they were on their way down. Nervous silence engulfed them as they descended into the bowels of the earth. The elevator doors creaked open after the long descent.

A dark room met their eyes, Loki could barely make out what looked to be rows of primitive machines. Lights flickered to life around them and lit the room; which was vast in a scale Loki had not expected, filled entirely with similar blocky machines.

"What is this machinery? I've yet to see it before…"

They stepped up on the platform in the center of the nest of machines, dark screens surrounded them. Natasha half laughed as she looked around at it all. "This can't be the data point. This technology is ancient…" She trailed off as she spied a small, modern day, port for the USB.

Loki, realizing what surrounded them, watched as she plugged it in and the computers around them shuddered to life, clicking and groaning.

Lettering typed itself, a mechanical voice read out the words: "INITIATE SYSTEM?"

Natasha shrugged at the two of them and laid her hands on the keyboard. "Y-E-S, spells yes." Whirring machinery filled the air and Natasha grinned, lowering her voice. " _Shall we play a game?_ " She looked over at the two of them. "It's from a movie that was really pop-"

"I know, I saw it." Steve shut her down, rather bluntly in Loki's opinion. The soldier focused on the screen in front of them as it came to life.

A blocky camera on top of the computer swiveled to face Steve. A staticky human face flickered to life on the screen. It listed off his name and birthdate in a thick accent. Next was Natasha, the program called her by her Russian name. Lastly Loki; to his surprise the thing didn't draw up entirely empty. It named him, "Odinson", though it listed his date of birth as "unknown."

Unsettled, Loki glanced over at the others briefly, hesitant to take his eyes off the screens in front of them. He saw the same uncertainty in their faces.

"It's some kind of recording..?"

" _I am not a recording_ , Fraulein." The face admonished her quickly. "I may not be the man I was when the captain took me prisoner in nineteen-forty five. But I am alive."

Loki turned to the screen closest to Natasha as an old picture of a pudgy man appeared on it. His identity was a mystery to Loki but Steve seemed to recognize it, as he glared darkly at the monitor.

Natasha expressed similar confusion. "You know this thing?"

Turning his full attention to Steve, Loki watched as the captain looked from the monitor with the picture to the staticky green face that shared its likeness. He could practically see Steve's mind racing. Angry disbelief plain on his face as he began to pace around the main console, inspecting it. "Arnim Zola was a German scientist who worked for the Red Skull… He's been dead for years."

"First correction: I am Swiss." The scientist snapped. "Second, look around you I have never been more alive. In nineteen-seventy two I received a terminal diagnosis. Science could not save my body. My mind, however, that was worth saving… On two hundred thousand feet of databanks. You are standing in my brain."

Loki couldn't help but laugh. "That's ridiculous since when did Midgard-"

"How did you get here?" Steve, now back next to him, looked deadly serious and cut off Loki's outburst.

" _Invited_."

"It was Operation Paperclip after World War II. S.H.I.E.L.D. recruited German scientists with strategic value." Natasha recalled, just as serious as Steve.

The face of Zola shifted, Loki could swear it smiled. "They thought I could help their cause. I also helped my own."

"Hydra died with the Red Skull!" Steve countered the machine's statement roughly. Both Loki and Natasha turned to him cautiously. There was more than anger in Steve's voice, there was a definite note of desperation present.

"Cut off one head-" The scientists face shifted to what Loki recognized as Hydra's symbol briefly before switching back to the face, which then split in two. "Two more shall take its place."

Voice lowering, Steve advanced on the monitor. "Prove it."

Images began to flicker across the screens in front of them. "Accessing archive… Hydra was founded on the belief that humanity could not be trusted with its own freedom." Images of old war soldiers blew past them. "What we did not realize was that if you try to take that freedom, they resist. The war taught us much. Humanity needed to surrender its freedom willingly. After the war, S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded and I was recruited." More images flickered past, Stark's father, the woman, Zola again. "The new Hydra grew. A beautiful parasite inside S.H.I.E.L.D. For seventy years Hydra has been secretly feeding crisis, reaping war-"

Significantly more somber, Loki still scoffed openly at the prospect. "What a mad concept. Taking credit for everything that has happened. There is living contradiction to that in this room-" Loki cut short as the broad side of Steve's shield struck him in the stomach hard enough to wind him.

The machine detoured its speech momentarily. "The Red Skull would have been fascinated by you…" It regained its pacing and continued. -Hydra has been secretly feeding crisis, reaping war, and history did not cooperate… history was changed." More images flicked faster and faster acrossing, blurring.

"That's impossible. S.H.I.E.L.D. would have stopped you." Natasha stepped closer, breathless disbelief in her voice.

Loki swore he heard contempt in the robotic voice as is responded. "Accidents will happen." Death certificates appeared, Loki saw Tony's father among them. At the end of the list Nicholas Fury's face filled the screen. "Hydra created a world so chaotic that humanity is finally ready to sacrifice its freedom to gain its security. Once a purification process is complete, Hydra's new world order will arise. We won, Captain. Your death amounts to the same as your life. A zero sum."

With a great smash of glass Steve's first interrupted Zola's speech. The blonde soldier fumed in front of the shattered screen for a few moments.

The screen next to them started up and the scientist continued. "As I was saying…"

Intense with anger, Steve rushed over to the flash drive, pointing at it. "What's on this drive?"

"Project Insight requires insight. So I wrote an algorithm."

"What kind of algorithm? What does it do?" Natasha joined Steve.

"The answer to your question is fascinating… Unfortunately you shall be too dead to hear it."

At the first sound of scraping metal Loki turned on his heel and saw the heavy elevator doors begin to close. He summoned a dagger and flung it toward the doors with his good arm, hoping to catch the doors and force them open. Something large whizzed past his head and he realized Steve had the same idea. The dagger and shield clanged uselessly against the just closed doors.

"Guys, we got a bogey. Short range ballistic. Forty seconds, tops." Natasha held up her phone, nervous fear in her eyes.

"Who fired it?" Steve caught his shield and approached her.

She looked up. "S.H.I.E.L.D. Loki can you get us out of here?"

Bitterly gesturing at his wrecked arm, Loki grimaced. "Not three people. Not after what I did to this thing."

Zola started up again as they surveyed the room. "I am afraid I have been stalling, captain. Admit it, it is better this way. We are both of us, out of time."

"Here!" Steve leapt toward a grate in the floor, ripping it away.

Loki and Natasha sprinted toward the hole as the bunker exploded around them. He locked eyes with Steve as they leapt in and saw him mouth " _shield"_. He grimaced but nodded and flung his good arm above Natasha. A golden barrier flickered at his fingertips and lights from the explosions disappeared under rubble and dust that rained down on them. Loki shuddered as his body went numb and cold. He barely saw Steve also hold up his shield above the three of them, taking some of the weight off Loki.

For what felt like ages they suffered through dark and deafening noise.

* * *

 **AN: Still chugging along. Thanks for the comments!**


	5. Chapter 5

As the last of the noise died down Loki's cramped muscles cried out as he relaxed. Concrete shifted around them, creaking ominously through a silence so complete it rang in his ears. Though he guessed that was partially the fault of the explosions.

Beside him Steve groaned, straining against the concrete pressing down on them. "Loki… please tell me you're conscious. I think Natasha- I think she's out."

"I am indeed." Loki felt for Natasha's wrist, checking her pulse. "She's alive, at the very least." He heard Steve sigh with relief.

"I'm going to try and get us out of here. We need to move before they send in a ground team." As Steve attempted to lift the rubble closing them in it rumbled. After a few moments of struggling Steve paused. "Any chance you could help out? Might go faster…"

Loki grimaced but shifted his position, trying to get a better hold on the rock above them. "On the count of three." He situated his good arm and began to count. "One. Two. Three!"

The combined force of the two of them easily lifted the main piece of rubble pinning them in. Loki continued to support the rubble as Steve dove back in to retrieve Natasha. Steve emerged, carrying her in his arms and Loki was able to get a good look at the two of them in the firelight.

They were covered in ash and dust, their clothes singed and dirty. Loki had to assume he looked the same. There was a glint of fiery determination in Steve's eyes that Loki appreciated.

"We need a way to dig ourselves out of this. You got any ideas?" Steve searched the rubble surrounding them on all fronts, not stopped to look at Loki as he voiced his question.

With a heavy sigh, Loki released the chunk of concrete and focused on the bigger problem. "This would be so much simpler had I not…" Loki gestured toward his bandaged arm, the white linen now ashy grey, dark blood soaking through to further mar the wrap. "Nothing to do about it now… Yes. I have an idea of how to get out of this. But unless you have a place to hide out and recuperate I'd rather not. I'm afraid I won't be entirely cognizant afterwards."

Steve grimaced unhappily at Loki's wound then looked from it to Natasha to the smoldering fires and rubble around them. "How badly will this mess you up? I can't carry both of you."

Smirking grimly, Loki dropped down on one knee and placed his hands flat against the ground. "Oh no, nothing that severe. I just may not retain much of the next few hours." as Loki sent out tendrils of magic to scout the rubble for its weakest points he felt the drain on his energies, fingertips numbing. He glanced back to Steve."Once that inconvenience is through I need to know what Project Insight is, what _you_ know about it. I very much dislike being left in the dark. _And_ I am certain Zola let Hydra know that I am here, too. If they did not know before. So I feel it is only fair I know _everything_."

A grey haze fell over Loki's vision as he began to enact his will on the rubble. The rock that buried them shifted and creaked as he pushed at pressure points in the rubble to clear a way. Exhaustion creeped into his bones and worsened the ache in his arm.

The last thing he remembered clearly was turning to grin at Steve once blue night sky became visible to them.

 **00000**

Natasha's head was pounding. She groaned and opened her eyes to see the inside of a car. The radio was blaring some late eighties song she vaguely recognized.

"Hey, welcome back to the land of the living." Steve smiled at her from the driver's seat. He turned down the radio as she sat up. "We're on the way to a friend's place. We should be safe to figure out things there… I hope."

Nodding, Natasha glanced around, noticing Loki slumped over in the backseat, mumbling silently, eyes closed. "Wh- what's up with him? Where'd we get the new car?" Focusing back in on Steve she saw him shift his grip on the steering wheel nervously.

"The truck was… uhm… in bad shape after the missiles so I had to switch it out for another one that I… _found_ and am borrowing. Again." He trailed off and cleared his throat. "As for Loki, we needed out of that pit so he got us out. He's been speaking in what's probably Asgardian for the last hour but he'll be fine."

Turning back to Loki, Natasha looked him over. There was a sickly blue-green hue to his skin, his lips were cracked, and his face gaunt. Natasha clicked her tongue as she watched blood drip from the soaked bandage on his arm onto the cloth seat covers. "I hope your "friend" has some first aid gear because we're gonna need it. Though I'm not sure that hydrogen peroxide works on aliens, now that I think about it. Also _who_ is this friend and how do you know they're trustworthy? I'm mean we're not even trusting people we've fought and lived with for the last few years-"

"He's- remember that guy I was talking to before the Lemurian Star mission?"

Natasha stared daggers at him disbelieving. "That guy you met, what, one time?"

" _Two!_ Two times!" Steve interjected quickly, turning red under the dust still coating his face. "And you made the decision to contact Loki on your own. I need you to trust me on this. He _will_ help us." It sounded like Steve was trying to convince himself as much as he was her.

Sighing, Natasha relented. "Fair point. How do you even know where to find this guy?" She watched Steve blush and begin to sputter. Deciding to drop the subject, she closed her eyes and let her body relax. "Nevermind. Just tell me when we get back in D.C."

The music from the radio and the unintelligible murmurings of Loki kept the car from growing silent but allowed her to quietly contemplate the situation they were in.

It shouldn't shock her, not really. S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't what she thought it was but there was nothing new about being lied to. She just couldn't shake the guilt and uncertainty. There were things she had done for S.H.I.E.L.D. that weren't pretty but she did them for the greater good. Now that she couldn't know what was S.H.I.E.L.D. and what was Hydra. What atrocities had she allowed to happen? Who had she eliminated who wasn't what she was told they were? And then there was Project Insight. She had never agreed with it, but it had passed and was nearly in effect. Without a clear way to stop it, Natasha felt a nasty hopelessness in her gut.

The volume of the radio turning up roused Natasha from her musing and she looked at Steve questioningly.

He grinned at her and nodded toward the radio.

Cocking her head, she listened to the tune. She smiled as she recognized the song and began to hum along.

Steve tapped his fingers to the rhythm and began to sing. She joined in, smiling gratefully. " _-I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy because I'm easy come, easy go. Little high, little low. Anyway the wind blows doesn't even matter to me-"_

 **00000**

The first thing Loki saw when he awoke was the Triskelion. He recoiled, panicking for a moment.

"Woah, woah! Loki, it's us!" Steve's voice cut through his groggy confusion and brought Loki back the the situation.

The Triskelion was far off across the Potomac. "Why are we back here?"

"Oh, good, you're speaking a language I can understand again. We're visiting a friend." Natasha replied dryly as she pointed out a sidestreet. "There, Steve, we can get out there." Twisting in her seat, Natasha faced him, she looked exhausted. "Project Insight is three next generation helicarriers that are going to wipe out life as we know it if we don't stop them. They're housed under the Potomac."

Loki reeled for a moment before finding words. "And _how_ do you propose we do that, if I may ask?" A grimace from Natasha let him know all he needed to. "Oh, we don't know. Spectacular."

As Loki's dry reply trailed off Steve pulled into the parking lot of a small park and turned the car off. He flipped up his hoodie and pulled it down over his face. Hopping out of the car he turned to look at them. "Let's go, his house shouldn't be far from here. We can explain everything else on the way. What we know about The Winter Soldier, Hydra, everything."

Their trek through alleys and neighborhoods culminated with a leap over a fence and Steve's knock on the house's back door.

A man Loki had never seen before opened the door, appearing both alarmed and bewildered as he looked them over. He focused on Steve. "Hey, man."

"I'm sorry about this. We need a place to lay low."

"Everyone we know is trying to kill us," Natasha spoke up, staring at him cautiously.

The man took a long moment to look them over, stern face. At last he pulled the door open wider and moved back. "Not everyone."

Steve sighed with relief and Loki saw the tension in his shoulders dropped as he stepped into the house. "You're a lifesaver, Sam. I mean it."

They entered and Sam motioned toward the bathroom, eyeing their dusty faces. "You can clean up in there. I-uh-" He noticed Loki's ruined bandage and trailed off for a moment. "Yikes. I have a first aid kit. I should have something for that. Maybe…" Sam ducked into his bathroom and pulled out a bulky box from a cabinet. He scooted past Natasha who had already grabbed a towel and was holding it under the sink.

Loki watched this happening, unwilling to move.

"The kitchen is in here. I can patch you up." Sam rattled the box as he moved past Loki into another room.

"I can do that myself."

Sam turned briefly and eyed him scathingly. "Fine. I'm making breakfast, then." Shrugging, he dropped the box roughly on his small kitchen table and moved toward the fridge, kicking it open.

Digging through the box, Loki procured a thick roll of white bandages and began the process of unbinding his bad arm. He noticed Sam glancing furtively at him as he did. "Contrary to popular opinion, I don't bite."

After being called out, Sam set down the skillet he was holding and moved to face Loki. "What happened? Not just with your arm, why are you guys here?"

Continuing to carefully unwrap his wound, Loki took a moment to gauge Sam. "You are a stranger to me. But Steve trusts you so I must as well. What happened to my arm is mostly unrelated to what brought us to your backdoor but- _ah-_ " Loki halted as he peeled away the last layer of the soiled bandage.

He heard Sam suck in a sharp breath.

Open air stung the gaping slash in Loki's arm. Blood still oozed from the angry wound. The skin around it was a blue hue Loki very much did not like to see, his glamor failing in its immediate area. He clicked his tongue, slightly woozy but determined to show annoyance more than anything. Seeing the thing brought the pain radiating from the epicenter.

"Dude, _holy shit_. Wait… I thought you could heal yourself, like faster than normal people, or something? Or was that just a weird rumor?"

Taking a deep breath, Loki pressed the new linen tight against his skin and deftly bandaged the wound back up. He looked at Sam and gave him a weary grin. "You're not wrong. _Normally_ , I would be able to heal this, or it would heal naturally in the span of a day or two. In theory, my body could naturally heal say… a destroyed eye in about a week and a half give or take. Fingers usually only take a week. But _this particular_ wound has been made resistant to both my natural healing and any tampering magically." Loki smiled grimly at the grimace Sam gave him. "You don't live with Thor for a thousand years without losing a few digits along the way. Anyway, as I was saying… but I believe Steve and Natasha should be the ones to fill you in as they see fit. This mess is their problem more than it is mine. And-" The faint smell of smoke distracted Loki and he glanced past Sam. "-And I believe your breakfast is burning."

Sam whipped around and busied himself, allowing Loki some quiet.

From the other room he could hear Natasha and Steve talking among themselves. He considered inserting himself in their conversation but waved the idea away, allowing them to deal the situation themselves. Pushing away doubts that lingered on the edges of his mind, he silently inspected Sam's home and waited.

After a call to breakfast from Sam, delivered with a sense of humor Loki appreciated, they all gathered around the small kitchen table.

Natasha, looking up from her meal, spoke up after a short while of silence. "So the question is, who at S.H.I.E.L.D. can launch a domestic missile strike?"

Steve replied almost instantly. "Pierce."

With a sigh, Natasha stood and began to pace. "Who happens to be sitting on to of the most secure building in the world."

"He's not working alone. Zola's algorithm was on the Lemurian Star."

Looking like she had just received a revelation, Natasha stopped her pacing. "So was Jasper Sitwell."

The name sparked a not so distant memory in Loki's mind; he leaned forward, eyes flicking between Steve and Natasha intently.

"So, the real question is, how do the three most wanted people in Washington kidnap a S.H.I.E.L.D. officer in broad daylight?"

"The answer is, you don't." Just as Loki prepared to speak, Sam cut into the conversation and procured a photo and folder, dropping them onto the table in front of Steve.

"What's this?" Loki asked as he watched Natasha snatch the photo out from under Steve's hand. He stood and moved behind the two of them, curious.

"Call it a resume." Sam glanced from Loki to Natasha raised her eyebrows.

"Is this Bakhmala? The Khalid Khandil mission, that was you?" She fixed him with an intrigued stare. "You didn't tell me he was a pararescue." Still staring at Sam, she handed the photo to Steve.

"Is this Riley?" Steve took note of the photo, two soldiers walking side by side.

"Yeah." There was a wistful tone in Sam's voice. From which Loki easily assumed that the man standing next to Sam in the photo was dead.

Ignoring the query, Natasha continued. "I heard they couldn't bring in the choppers because of the RPGs. What'd you use? A stealth chute?"

"No." Sam picked up the rest of the folder resting on the table. "These."

Thoroughly intrigued, Loki noticed the title of the documents. It read: EXO-07 FALCON. "Why the code name?" When Sam didn't respond Loki went back to the document, reading it over Steve's shoulder. A grin crept across his face as he quickly realized what he was looking at. "I am finding out _so much_ about Midgardian technology today."

"I thought you said you were a pilot?" Steve looked to Sam, voice quiet with disbelief.

Sam shook his head, smiling. "I never said pilot."

Snatching the folder of documents from Steve, Loki combed through them, barely hearing what Steve said next.

"I can't ask you to do this, Sam. You got out for a good reason."

With a small laugh, Sam shook his head again. "Dude, Captain America needs my help. There's no better reason to get back in."

Smiling, Steve pointed to the folder. "Where can we get our hands on one of these things?" There was a sense of optimism in his voice that wasn't there before.

"The last one is at Fort Meade." Unaffected by Steve's optimism, Sam's smile died away as he spoke. "Behind three guarded doors and a twelve inch steel wall."

Repressing a laugh, Loki glanced from Steve to Natasha, who shrugged. "Shouldn't be a problem."

* * *

 **AN: I can't tell if this is the _most_ fanfictiony thing I've ever written or not but it sure as hell feels like it.**


	6. Chapter 6

It took less than an hour to get what they needed out of Fort Meade once they got there. Bolstered by a plan, backup, and a meal the three of them worked with confidence.

Loki, marginally rejuvenated, led the effort with Natasha. She knew the facility better and was ultimately the one to retrieve the suit. Loki's job was to help her move unnoticed. Slipping past security was a cinch; with aid from quick fingers and a shaky light illusion, not one of Loki's best but passable under the circumstances, Natasha was in and out with her prize and none of the officers were any the wiser.

Not that much longer and they located Sitwell.

From a rooftop the three of them watched Sitwell greet a slimy looking man; one Loki did not know but Natasha clearly did, as she wrinkled her nose and scoffed in disgust. When the signal was given she trained a high power laser pointer on Sitwell with a smirk. "This is the best plan, you guys."

They met the hostage Sitwell and backed him up flights of stairs. Sputtering, he continually glanced behind him but seemed otherwise reluctant to take his eyes off the three Avengers. As Steve questioned him he avoided answering. "Normally, I'd say " _nice to see you"_ but I guess- ah- I guess there's no use with that now." He laughed nervously as they continued their ascent."

Once they reached the top Sitwell backed against the outer door and Steve flung it open, shoving the agent backwards and onto the ground. "Tell me about Zola's algorithm."

"Never heard of it." Sitwell stood and started to back up again as they bared down on him. The end of the roof approached fast.

"What were you doing on the Lemurian Star?"

"I was throwing up I get sea sick." As he finished, Sitwell tripped and fell backward. Steve grabbed him before he could plummet to the ground and pulled him back onto the roof. Sitwell smiled confidently as Loki saw a birdlike shape fly past out of the corner of his eye. He began to work a quick spell as Sitwell continued. "Is this little display meant to insinuate that you're gonna throw me off the roof? Because it's really not your style, Rogers."

Letting Sitwell go, Steve kept his voice low. "You're right… It's not." Loki smirked as Steve let the statement sit for a few moments. "... It's hers." Steve jumped quickly out of the way as Natasha kicked Sitwell backwards, sending him tumbling off the roof with a scream.

With his scream still ringing in the air, Natasha looked over at Steve as if suddenly remembering something, "Oh, wait, what about that girl from accounting? Laura- Liz-"

"Lillian." Steve cut her off and gestured at his mouth. "Lip piercing, right?"

"Yeah! She seems cute."

"Yeah… I'm not ready for that."

Confused but resigned to that by now Loki didn't speak up until Natasha turned to look at him. "Trying to find Steve a date. What about you, you need help? I know some people."

"You are joking, right?" When she shook her head with a grin, he frowned at her and replied dryly. "No… not my concern at the moment, Natasha."

Sitwell's screams came back into earshot as Sam flew above their heads. A simple light reflection shimmered around him. Loki let the spell fall away as Sam dropped Sitwell from the air and landed. Mechanical wings folding back into a manageable backpack-like shape. The approach the agent, sprawled out on the ground, and he raised a hand fearfully. "Zola's algorithm, it's a program!" He tried to catch his breath and his next words were halting. "For choosing… Insight's targets."

"What targets?"

"You three, a TV anchor in Cairo, the other secretary of defense, a high school valedictorian in Iowa city, Bruce Banner, Steven Strange…" The names came spilling out of his mouth as he rattled them off."Anyone who's a threat to Hydra. Now, or in the future."

"The future?" Steve cocked his head and Loki exchanged a concerned glance with Natasha. "How could it know?"

Sitwell smiled and shook his head, laughing in a superior tone. "How could it _not_?!" He began to stand as he continued, defiantly. "The twenty first century is a digital book. Zola taught Hydra how to read it."

As Sitwell continued, Loki nodded sharply, familiar with the idea.

"Your bank records, medical histories, voting patterns, email, phone calls, your damn SAT scores! He gets it, he had people do something similar against you!" Sitwell pointed at Loki who stopped nodding and glared at him. The agent didn't stop for long and started up again when no one spoke. "Zola's algorithm evaluates people's past to predict their future."

"What then?" Steve's question hung in the air for a moment as Sitwell caught his breath and seemed to realize what he had been saying.

"Oh my god. Peirce is going to kill me."

" _What then!_ " Taking a step forward Steve prompted him again. And Sam grabbed him by the scruff of his jacket to prevent the agent from fleeing.

"Then the Insight helicarriers scratch people off the list… A few million at a time."

Tense, shocked silence followed as the agent squirmed.

Natasha cleared her throat, voice low. "Then… let's stop standing around." She motioned toward Sitwell. "You, you're helping us."

Despite Sitwell's protests he complied with minimal amount of force.

They all packed into Sam's car and began to drive, without a concrete plan or even the concept of a plan. Nevertheless, Loki felt a deep desire to confront Sitwell, very aware he was using the Hydra agent as a vessel for his resentment toward Hydra, S.H.I.E.L.D., and those on his side who had suggested the tracker. Leaning forward and looking across Natasha, Loki caught Sitwell glancing at him. He responded with a smug glare. "I suppose my involvement in this comes as a surprise."

There was a moment of hesitation before the agent sighed. "Hydra doesn't like leaks-"

"Then why don't you stick a cork in it?" Sam snapped at Sitwell who momentarily stopped.

The agent looked darkly over at Loki. "I can't say anyone expected you to show up." He glared at the exposed bandage on Loki's arm. "Stark clearly didn't do his job well enough on that one."

"Stark did his job plenty fine. Fear of pain cannot keep me chained forever. It never would have even if this had not happened. This only accelerated the inevitable." Loki noticed the searching look Natasha gave him but ignored it, continuing his verbal attack on Sitwell. "I understand you think you can control me, and Thor, that's not a new concept to either of us. Simply because Thor and I _are_ helpful does not mean we must be. You tout your organization as all powerful yet you fail to acknowledge that it cannot control even a few wayward Midgardians. Your Hydra will come and go and no matter what happens here it will amount to nothing on the scale of the nine realms. Midgardian ego owns no bounds-"

Natasha coughed loudly, cutting off Loki's budding rant. She glared at him leaned forward to speak to Steve in the front seat. "Insight's launching in sixteen hours. We're cutting it a little close here."

"I know, we'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the helicarriers directly." Steve's words clearly agitated Sitwell.

"Are you crazy? That is a terrible, terrible-" Sitwell was cut off by a loud thump on the room. A split second later Loki saw a metal arm smash through the window closest to the agent, snatching him. The agent was pulled, screaming, out of the car and thrown into oncoming traffic.

Loki didn't see the end of the agent as he and Natasha watched, stunned, as the metallic hand pulled out a gun and disappeared from the window. Natasha dove forward; saving both Sam and Steve, as shots rang through the car. Loki, deciding the time for subtlety was no longer, summoned his armor and deflected the bullet meant for him.

Steve tugged on the emergency brake and the car came to a screeching halt, sending the assassin flying forward into the street.

As the assassin righted himself the whole car got a good look at im and Loki finally matched the description of the Winter Soldier to the man. There were a few moments of stunned silence before Natasha pulled out her gun. Just as she did a great force struck them from behind and pushed the car toward the Soldier; who leapt into the air, flipping and landing hard on the roof, caving it in.

Sam pushed on the breaks as Natasha dove for her gun which had fallen from her hand in the impact.

Loki conjured a knife and swung open his door in an attempt to get a slash on the Soldier. A car in the other lane slammed against the open door, almost sending Loki flying out as the door was ripped from its hinges. He regained his balance in time to see the Soldier rip the steering wheel from Sam's hands and out of the car.

" _Shit!_ "

Natasha fired her retrieved pistol and Loki watched the Soldier leap onto the armored car forcing them forward.

Their car skidded past others as the armored vehicle slowed then sped up again, slamming into them. The car began to flip and Loki bailed; using the car's momentum to help him leap high over both the flipping car and the assault jeep. He spun and landed a ways off on his feet. He brushed the hair out of his eyes in time to see Steve, Natasha, and Sam skid on one of the remaining car doors. Sam rolled a ways farther than the two Avengers.

Loki watched as men in black gear stepped out of the vehicle, one of them handed a rocket launcher to the Soldier. Loki dove toward Steve and Natasha but wasn't fast enough to intervene; Steve pushed Natasha his way and braced himself. Beside Natasha, Loki watched as Steve was blown off the freeway and onto the streets below; ricocheting off a car and out of sight.

Gunshots hailed the car they crouched behind. Natasha reached around to fire their aggressors while shouting at him over the noise. "You just gonna stand there or what?!"

Loki grimaced at her and peeked around the van, a bullet whizzed past his face.

The squad was approaching, Soldier at the lead clearly unphased by the gunfire around him.

Out of the corner of his eye Loki saw Sam run for cover.

The Soldier raised the launcher again and Loki sprang forward over the hood of the van as the second blast was fired. The explosion flipped a stopped car harmlessly behind him.

They had the squad's attention divided, Natasha ran past cars in the other lane and Loki closed in on them. The men behind the soldier hesitated their fire.

Taking advantage of that hesitation Loki leapt forward once again, bullets raining off his armor. He expected to find the Soldier facing him but, to his surprise, the Soldier fired off another explosion in the direction of Natasha.

Loki, momentarily distracted, watched the car she was crouching behind flip over the intersection and Natasha disappeared somewhere underneath them.

A bullet grazed his ear and brought Loki back to his immediate danger. He swung a dagger at the Soldier, only for the blade to miss its target as the man dodged out of the way with superhuman speed. Taken aback, Loki scarcely parried the blade the soldier procured. Without the element of surprise and exposed on all sides, Loki searched for an exit strategy. He slashed a few more times at the soldier while slowly backing up. Bullets whizzed past him or connected with his armor and bounced off.

His feet hit the concrete barrier and with a final slash, jostling the Soldier's mask slightly and forcing him to retreat a few steps; Loki fell back over the barrier, spinning to right himself and land on the street below.

Ducking under the safe shadow of the overpass Loki came face to face with Natasha, who nodded at him, watching the shadows above. She had twin pistols drawn. "I can nail him if you distract him.

Crafting a light copy, Loki sent it running out of the shadows. Natasha inched closer to the light, waiting.

A shadow appeared above them and a single shot cut through the light copy at the base of the neck, Loki winced. Lightning fast, Natasha reacted, shooting off multiple shots at the interpass above; the shadow disappeared.

Natasha took off, sprinting toward a stalled vehicle; Loki followed in pursuit.

A hail of bullets stung the place they had just stood and Natasha exchanged another few shots on the Soldier, emptying her pistols. Immediately retaliating, the Soldier riddled the cars around then and Loki caught some of the dangerous ones with a hasty golden barrier but most ricocheted harmlessly.

The Soldier readjusted and Loki took the opportunity to summon a fistful of ice. The projectile missed the Soldier, much to Loki's displeasure, but hit one of their other aggressors, freezing him in place instantaneously. Beside him, Natasha spun and began a dead sprint down the road. Loki paused for a moment, torn. Bullets screamed past him; cutting away at his energy as they pelted his protective barrier.

On one side of him sprawled Steve, barely visible inside an overturned bus but clearly conscious. His shield lied a ways off. One the other side was Natasha, no shield and the ire of the Soldier at her heels.

With a sigh, Loki took off after Natasha. He glanced back and saw the Soldier jump from the freeway, landing heavily on a stopped car. Speeding up, Loki easily caught Natasha and slowed his run to match hers.

She shouted over the gunfire, voice raw. "I can't fight him head on. I need a distraction!" Veering onto another street, Loki caught a glimpse of the Soldier, stalking them slowly and mechanically. The sight sent an involuntary shiver down Loki's spine.

"On any other day I would gladly face that _thing_ but…" He paused for breath as Natasha ducked into a wooded park. "But… I hate to say this; he's armed to the teeth and I am not exactly at my peak." Gesturing to his arm, Loki grimaced.

The look on Natasha's face pierced him, a kind of desperation he'd rarely seen. "I'm not going to abandon you! I just-" Rapid gunshots interrupted her and the color drained from her face. "Steve!"

Loki grabbed her before she could run off. "He'll be fine!" It took him a moment to find his tongue as more gunfire sounded, screams echoed through the city. "Who you really need is Thor but he's not here. Outright combat is not my strong suit but yes I can distract him for a time."

With a relieved nod, Natasha motioned toward the main road. "There's your best bet. I'll be right behind you."

The rapid fire gunshots came to an abrupt halt as Loki jogged to the road. Though a few disparate shots still echoed through the city. An explosion burst right behind him and Loki turned on his heel.

A police car was flipped and ablaze. The Soldier stalked toward him, again holding the rocket launcher.

Loki had a split second to conjure a barrier before a second explosion enveloped him. His knees almost buckled and he felt his pulse quicken. Determined not to show weakness, Loki let the smoke clear and stared down the Soldier.

They locked eyes; the Soldier's were dark and cold. There was no anger in them, it seemed to Loki that there was no emotion in them at all. The idea unsettled him.. Nothing about this Midgardian standing in front of him was natural.

To prompt a response Loki conjured twin daggers, flinging one past the Soldier's face. It missed him by a hair and forced him to move just as Loki threw the other. Much to Loki's annoyance the blade sparked off the Soldier's metal arm.

That seemed enough for the man, as he pulled out a knife of his own and rushed Loki.

Deflecting the blow with his bracer, Loki spun past the soldier, careful to keep his bad arm far from any action.

Seeming to notice his hesitation to use his other arm, the Soldier changed his angle of attack and lunged toward his off arm.

Sweeping at his legs Loki managed to trip him. But not before the Soldier latched onto him.

Bright white spots appeared in Loki's vision and he was jerked to the side as his aggressor stumbled, put off balance momentarily. With a whir of machinery Loki felt the grip on his wound tighten; his body writhed in pain.

Through a haze of red, Loki glared at the Soldier, who had righted himself and continued to tighten his grip. Furiosity overcame Loki as he struggled against the inhuman strength of his attacker. He pulled away, fresh blood staining the leather of his armor. His anger continued to build and he hissed through his teeth at the Soldier. " _Enough!"_

A blast of dark smoke like energy burst out in a radius around him, throwing the Soldier back, where he smashed hard into a car. Loki stumbled, dazed, and through his hazy vision, saw Natasha leap onto the Soldier.

Staggering, Loki watched the two of them struggle. After gaining the upper hand, the Soldier threw Natasha off and she crumpled to the ground. Immediately springing back up again she tossed a widow bite at him and it latched onto the Soldier's arm, briefly incapacitating it. She took off down the street and Loki took that as his cue to move as well.

Taking shelter behind a car, his body unwilling to run. Loki sent a weak light copy running after Natasha, hoping to distract their agressor. The Soldier followed, revving his arm.

Loki briefly relaxed, body exhausted, mind hazy, and arm aching. His relaxation was short however as he staggered to a stand, remembering just what he had left Natasha to deal with on her own. He barely got off the ground before a single shot rang through the city.

Gritting his teeth, Loki sprinted toward the sound. He rounded the corner in time to watch the Soldier's fist collide with Steve's shield. Natasha hid behind a car, gasping and holding her shoulder.

It looked like Steve matched up against the Soldier well enough; Loki ran toward Natasha.

She looked up at him, a slight pained grin on her face. "You were supposed to back me up there, jerk." She coughed and shifted her hand, exposing a bloody palm.

"I cannot say I feel particularly torn about that, Romanoff."

She laughed slightly at his dry reply, resting her head against the metal behind her.

Gunshots roused them from the moment and they watched as Steve and the Soldier grappled viciously with each other. A knife narrowly missed Steve's face and he shoved the Soldier into the van.

Groaning, Natasha motioned toward the discarded rocket launcher that lay not too far from their position. "Gimme that, would you?" She struggled to stand, leaning heavily against Loki. With her good arm she hefted rocket launcher up, Loki steadied her.

Steve grabbed the Soldier and flipped him, Loki saw the Soldier's mask fall to the concrete. Beside him he sensed Natasha tense.

The unmasked soldier stood and faced them. Something about his face seemed familiar to Loki.

Natasha hesitated, finger on the trigger, she cocked her head as Steve stood up straight.

" _Bucky?_ "

The name connected the man's face with Loki's spark of recognition and he frowned, inspecting the man closely.

"Who the hell is Bucky?" The Soldier barely hesitated, pointing a pistol at Steve who didn't move.

Swooping out of the sky, Sam kicked the man onto the ground. The Soldier immediately stood, now staring at Steve with confusion.

Loki swore he saw fear on the Soldier's face if only for a moment.

The Soldier raised his gun again and Natasha fired her round. It zoomed past Steve's head as he ducked and it exploded on a truck. When the smoke cleared the Soldier was nowhere to be seen.

Natasha dropped the gun and stepped toward Steve, who stared at the place the Soldier had disappeared.

Almost instantly, black vans surrounded them on all sides. agents poured out, training their weapons at them.

Loki tensed, preparing for another fight but saw Steve drop to his knees, hands in the air. He glanced to Natasha who nodded and followed Steve's lead.

Agents handcuffed each of them, Loki snarled at his captor as he recognized the rune covered shackles that clicked around his hands. He got a good look at Steve as they were ushered into one of the vehicles.

Looking distant and disorientated, Steve didn't return eye contact with him. His eyes were hollow and the sight unsettled Loki.

* * *

 **AN: I had such a good time writing this chapter. Playing with arguably the best scene of the movie is a ton of fun. Thanks for the comments, I really appreciate them!**


	7. Chapter 7

They were shuffled into the cramped back of a secure armored van. Two helmeted agents brandished electrified batons at them.

Loki glared at the agents but said nothing. This was not the first time he had been in this position; he had noticed how open the Hydra agents were with their weapons and he had a nasty feeling they were going to end up in some back alley with guns to their heads. He looked to Steve, only to find his teammate staring at his hands, utterly lost. "It was him. He looked right at me and didn't even know me." Steve muttered to himself, looking defeated.

"How's that even possible it was like seventy years ago." Sam seemed to be in denial.

"Zola." There was anger on Steve's face now. "Bucky's whole unit was captured in forty-three. Zola experimented on him." Guilt was plain on his face. "Whatever he did helped Bucky survive the fall. They must have found him and…"

"None of that's your fault, Steve." Natasha's voice was weak as she attempted to reassure him.

"Even when I had nothing I had Bucky."

From across the van Sam nodded toward Natasha, staring at Loki expectantly.

Eyes half lidded, Natasha clenched her jaw in pain, blood seeped from the whole in her shoulder, slicking her jacket. She took a deep breath and shifted uncomfortably.

Loki contemplated the danger of her bleeding out rather unsympathetically but acknowledged the problem. He jerked his head toward one of the agents. "She will bleed out here if we don't-"

The helmeted agent closest to him brandished their weapon in his face. Loki stared them down contemptuously.

With a flick of their wrist, the agent spun their weapon and jabbed it into the agent beside them. The attacked agent seized for a moment then went still. Shocked silence followed as the offending agent struggled to remove their helmet.

She tugged it off and blew her hair back. Commander Maria Hill massaged her forehead, grimacing. "Ah- That thing was squeezing my brain!" She smiled over at them but stopped at Sam. "Who's he?"

A short explanation later and she unlocked their cuffs.

Loki massaged his wrists and tossed his shackles to the ground. "I _was told_ that all of those had been destroyed." He glared pointedly at Hill. He moved to kneel next to Natasha, preparing to inspect her wounds.

"Up until like a day ago you had a tracker implanted in you to watch your movements. Did you _really_ believe that?"

"I'm not a complete fool." Loki scoffed.

Sam cleared his throat impatiently, drawing attention to himself. " _So_ how are we going to get out of here, exactly?"

"With this." Hill pulled out a small device from her armor and flicked it on, white hot sparks flew from its end before she turned it off. "I know their route, once we stop at a light a few miles up we can bail out. The city is all but shut down so we shouldn't have to worry about being run over." She nodded toward Natasha. "Loki, how well can you patch her up? He have medical supplies waiting where we're going, if you can't do the job."

It took Loki a moment to properly inspect the wound, probing Natasha's shoulder delicately with a finger; she clenched her teeth as he did so. "I loath to exert myself too greatly, especially with…" He trailed off, pointedly.

Hill sighed with exasperation. "I'm not apologizing for your stupid arm, pal."

Without a word, Loki turned back to Natasha and worked a quick spell. The appearance of her wound didn't change dramatically but the blood clotted around it. "I've essentially stopped her blood loss, though she's already lost quite a bit."

Just as Hill said, they escaped at a light, carving a hole in the floor of the vehicle. They got into an unmarked black van not far off. Not long after they made their way to an old storm drain system on the outskirts of town.

A short man rushed toward them as they entered and Hill called out. "G-S-W. She's lost at least a pint."

"Maybe two." Sam called out after Hill, glancing at Natasha with concern.

The man, presumably a doctor, slowed his pace and motioned for Natasha. "Let me take her."

"She'll want to see him first."

Everyone looked at Hill. Loki narrowed his eyes suspiciously. He had an inkling of who she meant.

Sure enough, a bruised and battered Nick Fury met their gaze as they rounded a corner. "About damn time." He began to list off his injuries as Natasha was patched up. "Lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collarbone, perforated liver, and one hell of a headache."

"Don't forget your collapsed lung." The doctor spoke up from Natasha's side.

"Lets not forget that. Otherwise, I'm good." Even bedridden Fury's dry wit brought a small smile to Loki's face.

Natasha questioned Fury, face an unreadable mask. "They cut you open. Your heart stopped."

"Tetrodotoxin B. Slows the pulse to one beat a minute. Banner developed it for stress. Didn't work so great for him but we found a use for it."

While they talked, Loki snagged another clean bandage from the doctor, who made a move to help him but quailed under Loki's glare.

Steve, still looking lost and angry, continued questioning the Director. "Why all the secrecy? Why not just tell us?"

It was Hill who answered, sounding like she was reading off a well learned mantra. "Any attempt on the Director's life had to look successful."

"Can't kill you if you're already dead." Fury concluded Hill's answer with a pained smile. "Besides, I wasn't sure who to trust."

Natasha kept her face blank but glanced to the side. Loki felt a small twang of sympathy for her.

Silence fell over the group for a time as they took time to heal and think.

It wasn't until Fury rose from his bed that they adjourned again. He looked at a picture of a man, identified as Alexander Pierce by the footnote, a dark shadow over his eyes. "This man declined a Nobel Peace prize. He said peace wasn't an achievement, it was a responsibility." Fury looked up at them, tired exasperation on his face. "See, it's stuff like _this_ that gives me trust issues."

"We have to stop the launch." Natasha, bandaged up, her voice low, looked toward Steve.

Fury continued, opening a briefcase beside him as he did. "I don't think the Council's accepting my calls anymore." The briefcase contained three small microchips which, from what Loki could see where he sat, were exactly identical.

"What's that?" Sam stepped forward.

Hill looked to him and spun around the laptop she was typing at. "Once the helicarriers reach three-thousand feet, they'll triangulate with Insight satellites, becoming fully weaponized."

"We need to breach those carriers and replace their targeting blades with our own."

Hill continued after Fury. "One or two won't cut it. We need to link all three carriers for this to work because if even one of those ships remain operational, a whole lot of people are gonna die."

"We have to assume everyone aboard those carriers is Hydra. To get past them and insert these server blades and maybe, just maybe, we can salvage what's left-"

"We're not salvaging anything." Steve spoke up, voice cold and angry. Loki watched him cautiously, rarely had he seen the Captain like this. "We're not just taking down the carriers, Nick. We're taking down S.H.I.E.L.D."

"S.H.I.E.L.D. had nothing to do with this." Fury defended himself quickly but Steve stood his ground.

"You gave me this mission. This is how it ends. S.H.I E.L.D. 's been compromised. You said so yourself. Hydra grew right under your nose and nobody noticed."

"Why do you think we're meeting in this cave? I noticed!"

"How many paid the price before you did?" Steve's anger clicked in Loki's head and he nodded slowly.

Fury couldn't hold Steve's gaze and he looked down. "Look, I didn't know about Barnes."

"Even if you had, would you have told me?" Steve's words pierced the air as took a stab at Fury. "Or would you have compartmentalized that too?" He let his statement hang for a second and Loki watched him compose himself briefly. "S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, it all goes."

"He's right." Hill spoke softly, gazing at Fury, who glanced from her to Natasha, who leaned in her chair, saying nothing. To Loki's surprise Fury even looked to him; he simply dipped his head towards Steve, following Natasha's wordless lead.

Lastly Fury looked at Sam, who spoke. "Don't look at me. I do what he does just slower."

Fury, defeated, finally met Steve's gaze again. "Well… It looks like you're giving the orders now, Captain."

 **00000**

" _Because I'm with you 'till the end of the line._ "

Steve shuddered and, despite the fresh breeze blowing around him, he felt boxed in. He stared down at the concrete below him, Bucky's gaunt face haunting his thoughts.

 _Had it really been seventy years? Had Bucky been brainwashed like this all that time? What terrible things had Hydra done to him? I should have been there. I should have looked. Why didn't I look for him. This is my fault, it's my-_

A hand laid on his shoulder jolted Steve out of his own mind. He looked up to see Loki. The currently ragged looking god did not look back at him. "Your friend, I cannot say I expect the best when we face off against him again." Loki paused and dropped his hand off Steve's shoulder and onto the railing. "I'm not one for optimism, however. So, you never know." The god flashed him a quick grin.

Steve didn't return the smile but nodded. Loki's words weren't much comfort but he appreciated the blood on the fresh white linen around Loki's arm caught his attention and he felt a pang of guilt. "Sorry about your arm. We shouldn't have dragged you into this. Hell, we shouldn't have forced that in the first place. I should have-"

The Trickster held up a hand, stopping him. "I'm not looking for apologies from you right now. Certainly not in the state you're in. After this is all over though, perhaps." Loki laughed wearily. "I can take a little blood loss better than you would expect. It's a… well, I suppose it's an Asgardian thing as well as…" The god trailed off, scowling.

"Still…" Steve suddenly realized who he was standing next to. "You know what it's like? To have your whole world turned upside down, everything you were told turned out to be a lie?"

"You know I do."

"How do you deal with it?" Steve looked at him desperately.

The god didn't respond for a moment, then smiled tiredly. "Normally I would not suggest my methods but, as gut reactions go, we are going about this in a remarkably similar fashion and… eventually I suppose it all worked out. Of course, you have a moral high ground that I… lacked." Loki met his gaze, as usual the god's smirk concealed whatever he was feeling. "As for your friend, how do you put it, we'll cross that bridge when we get there."

 _Bucky_.

Steve clenched the railing tight. The metal gave a little under his grip.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sam approach. "He's gonna be there, you know." Sam crossed his arms and leaned up against the railing.

"I know."

"Look, whoever he used to be, and the guy he is now, I don't think he's the kind you save. He's the kind you stop." Steve could tell Sam meant well, his voice was serious but not harsh.

Yet Steve could barely look at him as he responded. "I don't know if I can do that."

"Well, he might not give you a choice. He doesn't know you."

On his other side, he saw Loki smile. "Speaking from personal experience; this bunch can be quite persuasive."

An idea dawned in Steve's mind. "He will remember me." He looked from Sam to Loki. "Gear up. It's time."

"You're gonna wear that?" Sam sighed and nodded towards his street clothes.

Steve began to walk, looking back at him. "No. If you're gonna fight a war, you've got to wear a uniform."

* * *

 **AN: We're approaching the end stretch! Appreciate the comments!**


	8. Chapter 8

The Triskelion loomed above them as they drove across its bridge. Hill at the wheel of the confiscated S.H.I.E.L.D. vehicle. Loki, shotgun, lounged with his feet on the dash. Steve and Sam rode in the back. Natasha had already started her role in the mission.

"Are you sure wearing that thing is a good idea?" Loki turned around and looked Steve up and down, frowning critically. "I would not put it past seventy year old Midgardian armor to fail. Even your modern day equipment is rather… weak at times."

Steve shot him a stern look as he adjusted his sleeves. "That's not- I'll be fine. And it's better than nothing."

Commander Hill shushed them as they approached the gate guard. "Boys, please. Loki, are you ready?"

Straightening, Loki grinned and nodded. "Always. You do _know_ who you are speaking to, yes?" As they approached the gate he worked a complex spell. A slight shimmer passed over their heads as Hill slowed the car to a stop. Loki felt a chill go down his spine as the magic took its tole on him.

The agent at the gate swiveled to look at them. As soon as he did the shimmer passed to him and his eyes glazed over. He appeared dazed.

Hill cleared her throat. "Will that be all?"

The guard nodded foggily. "Yes ma'am. You can go." He typed something into the computer next to him and they passed without incident.

They sped through the complex and Loki let the enchantment fall away, groaning. "What _would_ you all do without me?" He shuddered but turned to smirk and Sam and Steve.

Clearly attempting to appear unimpressed, Sam raised one eyebrow. "I'm sure we'd manage."

After pulling into a parking garage, Hill led them to a fire escape and they slipped inside. The three Midgardians pulled out pistols as they snuck up flight after flight of stairs. They silently slipped past floors of security until finally Hill signalled for them to stop in front of a door. She activated a small device and raised her gun, waiting.

A young man opened the door and jumped, wide eyed at the sight of the infiltrators. The agents behind him stopped what they were doing and looked on. He raised his hands quickly as Steve stepped forward. "Excuse us." He let them pass without protest. The other agents did the same, clearly both starstruck and terrified in equal measure.

Hill fiddled with the computer for a moment and then motioned for Steve to take over.

Steve moved forward and cleared his throat, he glanced back at them. Loki nodded reassuringly. "Your turn, Captain."

Gaining a look of determination, Steve braced himself on the console and began to speak. "Attention all S.H.I.E.L.D. agents this is Steve Rogers. You've heard a lot about me over the last few days. Some of you were even ordered to hunt me down. I think it's time you know the truth." He took a deep breath and continued. "S.H.I.E.L.D. is not what we thought it was. It's been taken over by Hydra. Alexander Pierce is their leader. The Strike and Insight crews are Hydra as well. We don't know how many more… But I know they're in the building. They could be standing right next to you." He glanced at the other agents in the room, who's arms were still raised in surrender, looking flabbergasted. "They almost have what they want: absolute control. They shot Nick Fury. And it won't end there. If you launch those helicarriers today Hydra will be able to kill anyone who stands in their way. Unless we stop them." Steve took another deep breath. Loki, not for the first time, appreciated why he occupied their leading role. "I know I'm asking a lot. But the price of freedom is high. Always has been. But it's a price I'm willing to pay. And if I'm the only one, then so be it. But I'm willing to bet I'm not." Steve stepped away from the console and let the line fall silent.

Once Steve finished, Sam stepped over to him, grinning. "Did you write that down first or was that off the top of your head?"

Gunshots rang distantly from somewherein the building and the four of them jumped. Hill took a seat and began to type away, waving a hand at them. "Get going, I'll be talking to you through your headsets. Loki, you sure you don't want this?" She offered one of her pistols strapped to her thigh.

Scoffing, he laughed at her. "I'm quite sure. Such a crude weapon would simply slow me down."

She glared at him momentarily but relented and returned her pistol to its place, waving them away again.

Following Hill's directions they wound their way through the building, avoiding conflict. A siren sounded suddenly and a loud rumble shook the building. Loki grimaced as they jumped down a stairwell. "Sounds like they launched those carriers!"

Hill confirmed seconds later. "The countdown just started. Not to rush you but… We don't have long, we need to do this now."

More gunfire, a steady stream now, lit the building all around them. They burst out onto the pavement in time to hear the three helicarrier engines whirr. The second carrier had already cleared its holding.

Loki split off from Steve and Sam, sprinting to the third, and farthest, carrier. He heard Sam speak through the headset. "How do we know the good guys from the bad guys?"

"If they're shooting at you, they're bad!" Steve's reply paid off immediately as Loki encountered his first resistance.

A myriad of Hydra agents raised their weapons and opened fire as he approached. Instantaneously, he conjured a lance of light and threw it at the agents. Before he ducked behind some crates he saw the lance pierce one of the agents through the chest, skewering them and sending them flying backwards.

Loki ran around the crates and pulled out a knife, catching an agent in the throat with a spurt of blood and another agent in the gut. He ran past some others, relying on his armor to deflect their bullets. Two agents rounded the corner in front of him and stood in his way. Dropping to the ground, Loki slid to avoid their fire, popping up in time to disarm the closer agent. He swiftly shot them with their own gun. The other he emptied the rest of the clip into.

Hill spoke in his ear, smug. "No gun, huh?"

Annoyed, Loki found the camera that had alerted her and glared at it momentarily. "I'll stand by my statement." He took of running again as the helicarrier in front of him began to rise above its enclosure.

Scaling its hard metal surface swiftly, Loki swung his way onto its runway and began to down agents. The way was clear for a few precious seconds and he made a break for it.

Something small whizzed past his ear and exploded into a fireball on the runway just in front of the door to the carrier. Loki skidded to a halt and spun, searching for the culprit and, to his dismay, recognized the archer who flew past in the back of a Quinjet.

Clint notched another arrow and aimed it at him. Loki scowled and contacted the others as he ran for cover. "Barton is here. I'm guessing he hasn't been told what's happening."

Breathless, Steve responded. "Clint? Damn, he must not have been in the building to hear my explanation. You've got to get past him. Commander Hill, try and hack his headset and fill him in. We don't have much time."

Hill's confirmation was drowned out by another fireball explosion from Clint that burst on the plane Loki was hiding behind. He cursed as Hydra agents converged on him from around the strapped down planes.

Bearing down on one of the agents, Loki swung his knife in a wide arc. It connected with the first agent and sliced them clean but caught in the helmet of the second and was jerked from his hand. The agents behind him opened fire as he stumbled and he felt bullets pelt his back. None pierced his armor. Fearing another arrow from Clint, Loki pushed against the remaining agent close to him. His bad arm screamed as he sent the agent flying but he ignored it and rolled out of the way of further gunfire.

Arrows scattered around him, but none made contact and Loki took a moment to glance up at the archer. Speaking only on Steve's channel, he assessed Clint's strategies. "He's not very willing to do any real damage."

"Thank god. How close are you to the control center?" Steve sounded winded but otherwise unassailed at the moment.

Loki scowled at his progress. "Not very. He may not want to hurt me but he's having no such doubts keeping me occupied." More Hydra agents descended on his position and began to circle him. He lowered his stance and conjured a quick dome barrier just before they opened fire. Procuring a few projectiles, he flung them towards four of the agents. They fell to the ground limply but their were more to take their place.

The continued hail of bullets exhausted him. Loki held his stance but could feel his barrier failing. "I may… require some assistance."He called out on all stations as he took down a few more agents but their numbers hardly decreased. His anger spiked. "How many of them _are there?_ "

Steve responded to his plea. "I can get there." The line cut off as Steve likely contacted Sam.

The situation began to grow dire as the Hydra agents continued their fire and Loki dropped to one knee. He glanced up at Clint high above. The archer had an arrow notched but seemed to be hesitating. Loki knew one good shot could destroy his barrier and leave him defenseless it looked like Clint did as well. Loki shrunk the protective bubble around him and the agents closed in.

A jet landed roughly in front of him and Loki's stomach dropped at the site of the pilot. The Soldier, unmasked, jumped out. His hand went to his belt and a second later he tossed something toward Loki and took a step back.

Loki recognized what the Soldier had thrown as it hit the ground and rolled to a stop mere inches from his shield. In a moment of panic, Loki froze up, unable to take his eyes off the grenade. The Hydra agents around him made a hurried retreat.

Before the thing could explode, Loki saw an arrow strike it, sending it flying high into the air. The grenade burst high above his head and Loki leapt to action.

He released his shield and ran behind one of the many crates strapped to the carrier, stumbling as his tired legs protested. More arrows screamed past his head, soft thumps indicated they had reached their mark in the agents behind him. Loki glanced up at Clint; the archer nodded down at him while notching another arrow.

Wind howled around him as the carrier continued it ascent. Hill's voice cut through the noise. "We're running out of time!"

Before Loki could respond, the Soldier rounded the corner toting one of Clint's bloodied arrows in his hand. Loki stumbled the other direction, hoping for more backup from the archer.

None was forthcoming and Loki was forced to look up again, he saw Clint grappling with one of the Hydra agents inside the Quinjet. Realizing he was on his own, Loki cursed and spun to face the Soldier.

A fist whizzed past his face. Loki dodged it, grabbing and twisting the Soldier's normal arm. He felt the Soldier's shoulder dislocate for a moment and grinned viciously.

His victory was short as the Soldier pushed him away then rushed him with his metal arm, brandishing Clint's arrow. Loki parried his first few swipes but stumbled over the body of a Hydra agent as he backed up.

He fell backwards and the Soldier took advantage. The Soldier pinned him with his knees. Loki raised his hands in a last ditch effort to protect himself. Clint's arrow plunged toward his face.

Pain exploded across Loki's face and amidst it he felt the unmistakable grinding of metal against bone deep in his left eye socket. He could hear the arrow grinding into his skull, louder than gunfire, louder than the wind, louder than the engines of the carrier.

Loki screamed and pushed the Soldier off in a burst of strength, sending him flying backwards. He clutched at his face; he could see the shaft of the arrow with his good eye and grabbed for it, hands shaking. Blood ran down his fingers as he roughly dislodged the arrow from his skull, desperate to stop the scraping that shook his whole body.

The arrow clattered to the ground, Loki's stomach turned as he saw what remained of his left eye shredded at its edges. He struggled to his feet, almost blacking out if not for the adrenaline racing through his body. He whipped his head around in an attempt to find the Soldier before he was caught off guard. His blood pumped in his ears.

A shadow passed over him and Loki saw Sam and Steve land on the helicarrier. The pair immediately spotted him and rushed over, there was concern on Steve's face.

Before they could reach him, the Soldier cut them off, kicking Steve clear off the side of the carrier. Sam ran after him and tried to take off but the Soldier caught one of his wings, flinging him back. Sam caught himself and began to fire at the Soldier, who flipped out of the way.

The Soldier fired a grappled at Sam and swiftly tore one of the wings off his pack. He rushed Sam and knocked him off the carrier as well.

Taking advantage of the Soldier's distraction Loki dove for where Steve had fallen off. He saw Steve struggling to regain his footing and hopped off the tarmac of the carrier, his boots sliding on the cold metal. Reaching for Steve, he took his hand off his ruined eye.

Steve recoiled momentarily. "What the hell happened?" Reaching for Loki's non-bloody hand, Steve climbed shakily onto the stable enough metal of the carrier.

Loki handed over his microchip, pressing it into Steve's hand. "Your friend." He put a hand over his eye again, feeling blood slicking his face. "Finish this, Rogers. Finish it."

Steve slipped the chip into his belt and nodded, preparing to leap aboard the carrier. "How are you going to get off?"

A Quinjet flew past them, Clint piloting it. Loki nodded towards it. "There." He took a step towards the edge but stopped and shouted over the engine towards Steve. "Don't go getting yourself killed! I cannot burst into Valhalla to get you back!" With a final nod, Loki leapt off the carrier.

He fell through the air, wind whistling in his ears. Clint swerved to catch him and Loki tumbled into the jet, landing hard amidst the bodies of Hydra agents. Clint shouted at him from the cockpit. "Hold on!"

The jet pitched to the side hard and Loki wrapped his good arm around one of the seats on its side, gritting his teeth in pain as his adrenaline began to drop and he started to process what had just happened.

One the jet leveled out, Loki stumbled to the cockpit, shaking as his body went into shock. "Barton, I-"

Clint yelped as he glanced at Loki. "What the- _your eye!_ " Clint flew the plane high above the carriers and leveled it out before he swiveled to look at him, dawning disgust on his face. "How are you standing right now?"

Feeling woozy, Loki braced himself on Clint's seat. His one good eye had trouble focusing on the archer. "I… doubt I will be for much longer..." His mind skipped a beat and Clint's response was lost to him. He touched the side of his face, bemused, his fingers came up slick with dark red blood. Time seemed to meld together as his what was left of his vision spun. He knew they were moving but for how long he couldn't tell. The voices of Hill and Steve spoke on the com system but he could not decipher them.

Clint grabbed his arm, bringing him back if just for a moment. " _Loki!_ It's over, we won! But we have to get out of here before those carriers take us down with them!"

Deafening gunfire came from below them, explosions rocked the jet. Loki looked down to see the three helicarriers setting each other ablaze. " _Steve?_ "

"He's still in there. But we have to go, there's no way to reach him, it's too dangerous."

The plane pitched forward, as did Loki. His vision was fading fast, darkness crept into his sight. Natasha's voice came through the com, shouting something like "Pierce is dead". He straggled the edge of consciousness for a few moments more. Slumping to the floor of the jet, he clutched at his ruined eye. Darkness overcame his vision totally.

 **00000**

Steve stumbled to the railing as his world exploded around him. His body ached. He pressed a hand to his gut and brought it up bloody.

Bucky was below him, pinned under a massive steel beam. Bucky, his first friend, a reminder of his past.

 _Bucky._

He hopped down, collapsing for a moment as his legs cried out in agony, gunshot wound throbbing. The helicarrier was burning. They were falling.

 _At least this time he was falling with Buck. He wouldn't abandon him again._

He approached his friend. Bucky looked at him with frightened eyes, fighting against the beam trapping him. Steve struggled to lift the beam just enough for Bucky to wiggle free. He released the beam and stepped back, gazing at his lost friend. "You know me."

"No I don't!" Bucky's voice cracked as launched himself at Steve, punching him back. He sounded like a scared child.

Steve struggled to his feet, unable to tear his gaze away. "Bucky, you've known me your whole life."

Again Bucky attacked him. Fearful, confused, denial clear in his eyes.

"Your name is James Buchanan Barnes."

" _Shut up!_ " Again, Bucky pushed away.

Steve ripped off his helmet, desperate and aching. The world was on fire. "I'm not gonna fight you." He let his shield fall away, it disappeared in the river far below. He stared at Bucky, every inch of his being ached for him. "You're my friend."

There was so much confusion on Bucky's face, yet he attacked again, tackling Steve to the ground. "You're my mission." Bucky punched him again and again, repeating that line in a desperate mantra. Smoke billowed around them. Everything was burning.

 _Bucky._

"Then finish it." Steve sucked in a shallow, pained breath. Blood filled his mouth. "Because I'm with you to the end of the line."

Bucky hesitated, his eyes widened in horror. For a moment, despite the mayhem around them, the world seemed to go still. Slowly, Bucky lowered his fist.

The beam beneath them gave way and Steve surrounded him in a halo of destruction. The last thing he saw was Bucky far above him. Then he hit the water.

* * *

 **AN: Action! Angst! Planting and payoff! One more chapter left!**


	9. Chapter 9

The Avengers tower was busier than it had been in months. The week after the incident was a chaotic one. Fury disappeared, Hydra agents were rooted out all over the government, Natasha faced congress and walked out free, the world reeled at the secrets released in the information dump.

Tony, who had apparently made it to the tower mere hours before the incident reached its climax, berated them for recklessness, though he was clearly relieved to see them alive. Bruce returned as well, introducing himself awkwardly to Sam. Thor arrived late in the week in the burst of light and sound that was the Bifrost. Before he said anything he had tackled Loki in a hug.

"Brother, you cannot go dismantling corrupt governments without me!" He had laughed for a moment before he noticed the bandage over Loki's left eye. "Your eye!"

Loki had smirked, he had not attempted to push Thor away despite how his right arm throbbed. "Yes, it is not there. I match the Allfather for the time being."

Sam, as was universally decided, deserved a spot on the team. He accepted immediately, grinning wide. "Dude, its the _Avengers_. Of course I want it!"

It was clear to Loki that Steve was distant amidst all this. Once he returned from the hospital he smiled and greeted his friends but nothing more. He attended their meetings but never participated more than was necessary. Until late one night, where in he called together Loki, Natasha, and Sam; the trio that had formed the backbone of the incident. They met in Steve's room, chairs hastily pulled together in a circle.

The Captain, lip still split, a half healed gash above his eye, gazed at each of them for a long silent moment. "I'm guessing you can all figure out what I want to talk about."

Separately, they all nodded in agreement. Loki was the first to speak. "We need to find him, I agree. But we must go about it carefully. Just because you said you got through to him in the moment does not mean he remembers everything. And, we all know how dangerous he can be." He smiled grimly, gesturing towards his face, for the last few days his eye had been itching incessantly as it healed.

Natasha leaned back in her chair, sighing. "Finding him is not going to be easy. You aren't the world's greatest assassin for seventy years without knowing how to hide."

Taking in her words, Steve looked dour. "We have to try. I can't leave him out there by himself." The guilt in his voice was palpable.

Sam, picking up on that tried to reassure him. "We will find him. But…" He paused, grimacing. "But you have to be prepared, Steve, if we do find him and he's not… the same as you remember."

"I'm not the same as I was back then either. It just takes work!" Steve grew quickly defensive.

Loki cleared his throat. He fixed Steve with an unwavering stare. "You know you must tell Tony, right?"

A dark silence fell over them. Sam, confused, looked between the trio.

Voice soft, Steve had trouble meeting Loki's gaze. "We can't be certain-"

"We all saw the same thing down in Zola's pit. It's the logical conclusion."

"But what if-"

Natasha cut Steve off, her tone sympathetic. "Loki's right, Steve. You need to tell Tony what happened before we run off after Barnes. He needs to hear it from you."

Clearly conflicted, Steve glanced between them. "He'll hate him."

"Yes, he will." Loki was not willing to sugar coat things, he needed Steve to understand. "He will hate him. He'll likely want him dead. But if you give him time he can come to terms with it. If you do not give him that time this _will_ explode in you face."

"I- you're right." Steve groaned, his shoulders drooped in defeat. He put his head in his hands. "I don't know… how can I even begin to tell him? I knew Howard, he was a great man." Steve shuddered. " _His parents_. How can I tell him my best friend murdered his parents?"

Sam sucked in a shocked breath.

After a moment of hesitation, Natasha reached out for Steve, putting a hand on his arm. "I don't know. But if anyone can figure it out it's you."

Their meeting disbanded leaving a sense of dread looming over the group.

About half a week later the issue came to a head.

In the middle of delicately unwrapping the bandage covering his eye, Loki received a panicked knock at the door. Seconds later Steve burst through and ran over to him, grabbing Loki by the shoulders. "I told him. He stormed off, towards his workshop I think. Can you go talk to him, please." He took a shuddering breath. "Maybe he'll listen to you. Maybe-"

Raising a hand, Loki stopped him. "Breathe, Steve. Breathe." He steadied the soldier cautiously. "How did you go about telling him?"

Steve took a deep breath and straightened, releasing Loki. "Yes… I'm sorry." He looked no less distressed, however. "I didn't plan on it. We were eating lunch and I just started talking. I didn't even think about what I was saying."

"Go talk to Natasha, or Sam, anyone. Do not stew in your doubt. I will talk to Tony. But do not expect me to advocate for Barnes no matter what, that is _not_ what Tony wants to hear and that is not what I believe in deserved."

Though he knew it wouldn't exactly put Steve at ease, it was enough to reassure him at least slightly. Loki was left alone and took some time to prepare for the conversation he was to have. He finished unwrapping his bandage and inspected his healed eye, blinking as it adjusted to the light. He gave Tony about half an hour before he headed towards him.

Blaring music hit Loki as soon as he stepped into Tony's workshop. The Midgardian glanced up from whatever he was welding, dark goggles obscured his eyes. Loki leaned casually near the elevator, waiting for Tony to engage him first.

It took maybe five minutes of this before Tony finally broke. He shut off his welder and turned the music down before he swiveled in his chair. "Your eye is better."

"Indeed, took it long enough." Loki scowled in annoyance. With Tony's goggles still on he could barely read his face.

"If you can heal like that, why is Odin missing an eye?" Tony was clearly avoiding the subject at hand but Loki let him do so.

"He gave that up for wisdom. You do not get your body parts back if you sacrifice them. That would defeat the symbolic purpose." He walked over to sit opposite Tony, still not pushing him. He could see Tony fiddling with a tiny, half built machine, restlessly.

"You're not… gonna look for _him_ , are you?" Tony noticeably had trouble getting his question out. Barely concealed rage simmered in his voice.

Calmly, Loki nodded. "I am. I believe that to be the right thing to do."

Tony ducked his head quickly, he shook ever so slightly. " _Why?_ He- he- Steve doesn't get it. I thought you…"

Leaning forward, Loki stared Tony down. "Take off your goggles and look me in the eye."

His friend recoiled at his cool tone but did as he said. Tony's eyes were red and angry.

"I cannot, in good conscious, deny him a second chance. Without those where would I be?" Loki posed the question rhetorically. They both knew the answer.

"But you didn't-he _murdered_ them, Loki." Tony's voice cracked but he didn't break eye contact. His dark eyes misted over.

"I know." They stared at eachother for a long moment, Loki allowed some softness to slip into his gaze. "I am not saying he deserves unconditional acceptance. You earn your trust, is that not how it works?"

Tony shook his head, face full of denial. "He's a murderer."

"I am a murderer. And I knew full well what I was doing when I did so. I killed my biological father, I murdered hundreds of Frost Giants, countless Midgardians, I have tried to kill practically everyone in this tower, directly or not." Loki slammed a hand down on the table to keep Tony's attention but carefully kept his voice level. "You have full right to be angry, it would be insane not to be. But you cannot deny the chance that he may be redeemed. Perhaps it does not work out, a very real possibility if I am being honest, and there is no saving him then you have every right to strike that final blow, I doubt Rogers could bring himself to. But until such a time he should be given at least a sliver of a chance."

Tony shuddered, he closed his eyes and turned away, breathing heavily. They sat in silence like this for some time; until finally Tony found his voice. "I… I can't help you look for him. I don't want to. But I won't stop you." He looked back up at Loki, obviously exhausted. "Can we just… talk? Not about this. Something else, anything."

Loki nodded and relaxed. His mind raced for a safe topic. "I heard Pepper received a nomination for some award. Is that true?"

A fraction of a smile flickered across Tony's face. He loved heaping praise on Pepper. "Yeah! Yeah she did, I think the ceremony is in a few weeks I was planning on going with her…"

* * *

 **AN: And so this one is over. I felt it had reached a long enough limit and a natural concluding point. But I am already working on a follow up to wrap up that whole Bucky loose end thing. I will likely write the whole thing and publish it in sections as I did with this one; it allows for higher quality over all. I'm already on chapter 4 of that and I'm not planning on making it much longer than this one so here's hoping I can get it publishing pretty soon. Thanks to all the people commenting, I haven't had that much participation since I started in 2014 or so and that's really fun. Thanks for reading, if you want to read the next one following me would be the best way to do keep a look out for when that shows up.**


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